9,908 research outputs found
Gauge Field Preheating at the End of Inflation
Here we consider the possibility of preheating the Universe via the
parametric amplification of a massless, U(1) abelian gauge field. We assume
that the gauge field is coupled to the inflaton via a conformal factor with one
free parameter. We present the results of high-resolution three-dimensional
simulations of this model and show this mechanism efficiently preheats the
Universe to a radiation-dominated final state.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure
Plant canopy shape and the influences on UV exposures to the canopy
The solar spectra at selected sites over hemispherical, conical and pinnacle plant canopy models has been evaluated with a dosimetric technique. The irradiance at the sites varies by up to a factor of 0.31 compared to the irradiance on a horizontal plane. The biologically effective (UVBE) exposures evaluated with the dosimetric technique at sites over the plant canopy are up to 19% of that on a horizontal plane. Compared to a spectroradiometer, the technique provides a more practicable method of measuring the UVBE exposures at multiple sites over a plant canopy. Usage of a dosimeter at one site to provide the exposures at that site for different sun angles introduces an error of more than 50%. Knowledge of the spectra allowed the UV and UVBE exposures to be calculated at each site along with the exposures to the entire canopies. These were dependent on the sun angle and the canopy shape. For plant damage, the UVBE was a maximum of about 1.4 mJ cm-2/min. Compared to the hemispherical canopy, the UVBE exposure for generalised plant damage was 45% less for the pinnacle canopy and 23% less for the conical canopy. The canopy exposures could not be determined from measurements of the ambient exposure
High resolution, low temperature photoabsorption cross-section of C2H2 with application to Saturn's atmosphere
New laboratory observations of the VUV absorption cross-section of C2H2, obtained under physical conditions approximating stratospheres of the giant planets, were combined with IUE observations of the albedo of Saturn, for which improved data reduction techniques have been used, to produce new models for that atmosphere. When the effects of C2H2 absorption are accounted for, additional absorption by other molecules is required. The best-fitting model also includes absorption by PH3, H2O, C2H6 and CH4. A small residual disagreement near 1600 A suggests that an additional trace species may be required to complete the model
Electron Neutrino Mass Measurement by Supernova Neutrino Bursts and Implications on Hot Dark Matter
We present a new strategy for measuring the electron neutrino mass (\mnue)
by future detection of a Galactic supernova in large underground detectors such
as the Super-Kamiokande (SK). This method is nearly model-independent and one
can get a mass constraint in a straightforward way from experimental data
without specifying any model parameters for profiles of supernova neutrinos. We
have tested this method using virtual data generated from a numerical model of
supernova neutrino emission by realistic Monte-Carlo simulations of the SK
detection. It is shown that this method is sensitive to \mnue of 3 eV
for a Galactic supernova, and this range is as low as the prediction of the
cold+hot dark matter scenario with a nearly degenerate mass hierarchy of
neutrinos, which is consistent with the current observations of solar and
atmospheric neutrino anomalies and density fluctuations in the universe.Comment: 4 pages including 1 figure, accepted by Phys. Rev. Let
A Black Hole of > 6 Solar Masses in the X-ray Nova XTE J1118+480
Observations of the quiescent X-ray nova XTE J1118+480 with the new 6.5-m MMT
have revealed that the velocity amplitude of the dwarf secondary is 698 +/- 14
km/s and the orbital period of the system is 0.17013 +/- 0.00010 d. The implied
value of the mass function, f(M) = 6.00 +/- 0.36 solar masses, provides a hard
lower limit on the mass of the compact primary that greatly exceeds the maximum
allowed mass of a neutron star. Thus we conclude that the compact primary is a
black hole. Among the eleven dynamically established black-hole X-ray novae,
the large mass function of XTE J1118+480 is rivaled only by that of V404 Cyg.
We estimate that the secondary supplies 34% +/- 8% of the total light at 5900A
and that its spectral type is in the range K5V to M1V. A double-humped I-band
light curve is probably due to ellipsoidal modulation, although this
interpretation is not entirely secure because of an unusual 12-minute offset
between the spectroscopic and photometric ephemerides. Assuming that the light
curve is ellipsoidal, we present a provisional analysis which indicates that
the inclination of the system is high and the mass of the black hole is
correspondingly modest. The broad Balmer emission lines (FWHM = 2300-2900 km/s)
also suggest a high inclination. For the range of spectral types given above,
we estimate a distance of 1.8 +/- 0.6 kpc.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to appear in ApJ Letters; Minor changes to Fig 1
Gravitational wave bursts from cusps and kinks on cosmic strings
The strong beams of high-frequency gravitational waves (GW) emitted by cusps
and kinks of cosmic strings are studied in detail. As a consequence of these
beams, the stochastic ensemble of GW's generated by a cosmological network of
oscillating loops is strongly non Gaussian, and includes occasional sharp
bursts that stand above the ``confusion'' GW noise made of many smaller
overlapping bursts. Even if only 10% of all string loops have cusps these
bursts might be detectable by the planned GW detectors LIGO/VIRGO and LISA for
string tensions as small as . In the implausible case
where the average cusp number per loop oscillation is extremely small, the
smaller bursts emitted by the ubiquitous kinks will be detectable by LISA for
string tensions as small as . We show that the strongly
non Gaussian nature of the stochastic GW's generated by strings modifies the
usual derivation of constraints on from pulsar timing experiments. In
particular the usually considered ``rms GW background'' is, when G \mu \gaq
10^{-7}, an overestimate of the more relevant confusion GW noise because it
includes rare, intense bursts. The consideration of the confusion GW noise
suggests that a Grand Unified Theory (GUT) value is
compatible with existing pulsar data, and that a modest improvement in pulsar
timing accuracy could detect the confusion noise coming from a network of cuspy
string loops down to . The GW bursts discussed here might
be accompanied by Gamma Ray Bursts.Comment: 24 pages, 3 figures, Revtex, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Stringent constraint on the scalar-neutrino coupling constant from quintessential cosmology
An extremely light (), slowly-varying scalar
field (quintessence) with a potential energy density as large as 60% of
the critical density has been proposed as the origin of the accelerated
expansion of the Universe at present. The interaction of this smoothly
distributed component with another predominately smooth component, the cosmic
neutrino background, is studied. The slow-roll approximation for generic potentials may then be used to obtain a limit on the scalar-neutrino coupling
constant, found to be many orders of magnitude more stringent than the limits
set by observations of neutrinos from SN 1987A. In addition, if quintessential
theory allows for a violation of the equivalence principle in the sector of
neutrinos, the current solar neutrino data can probe such a violation at the
10^{-10} level.Comment: 7 pages, MPLA in press, some parts disregarded and a footnote adde
The Circumstellar Extinction of Planetary Nebulae
We analyze the dependence of circumstellar extinction on core mass for the
brightest planetary nebulae (PNe) in the Magellanic Clouds and M31. We show
that in all three galaxies, a statistically significant correlation exists
between the two quantities, such that high core mass objects have greater
extinction. We model this behavior, and show that the relation is a simple
consequence of the greater mass loss and faster evolution times of high mass
stars. The relation is important because it provides a natural explanation for
the invariance of the [O III] 5007 planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF)
with population age: bright Population I PNe are extinguished below the cutoff
of the PNLF. It also explains the counter-intuitive observation that
intrinsically luminous Population I PNe often appear fainter than PNe from
older, low-mass progenitors.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, accepted for ApJ, April 10, 199
The Shape and Scale of Galactic Rotation from Cepheid Kinematics
A catalog of Cepheid variables is used to probe the kinematics of the
Galactic disk. Radial velocities are measured for eight distant Cepheids toward
l = 300; these new Cepheids provide a particularly good constraint on the
distance to the Galactic center, R_0. We model the disk with both an
axisymmetric rotation curve and one with a weak elliptical component, and find
evidence for an ellipticity of 0.043 +/- 0.016 near the Sun. Using these
models, we derive R_0 = 7.66 +/- 0.32 kpc and v_circ = 237 +/- 12 km/s. The
distance to the Galactic center agrees well with recent determinations from the
distribution of RR Lyrae variables, and disfavors most models with large
ellipticities at the solar orbit.Comment: 36 pages, LaTeX, 10 figure
On the width of the last scattering surface
We discuss the physical effects of some accelerated world models on the width
of the last scattering surface (LSS) of the cosmic microwave background
radiation (CMBR). The models considered in our analysis are X-matter (XCDM) and
a Chaplygin type gas. The redshift of the LSS does not depend on the kind of
dark energy (if XCDM of Chaplygin). Further, for a Chaplygin gas, the width of
the LSS is also only weakly dependent on the kind of scenario (if we have dark
energy plus cold dark matter or the unified picture).Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure, 2 tables, accepted to IJMP
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